Research director jobs in houghton regis, central bedfordshire
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
Please identify your notice period and salary expectation in your cover letter.
Note: Unfortunately we cannot support applications from international candidates at this time
As one of the largest federated charities in the UK, with arguably greater reach into the lives of families and educational settings than any other non-Government organisation, Parentkind is on a bold and urgent mission: to support, champion, and empower parents to be partners in their children’s education and wellbeing. To help deliver this, Parentkind's fundraising efforts helped grow Parentkind's income from £1.5m to £10m (including in-kind donations) between 2022 and 2024.
Although best known for our support of almost 24,000 Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs), Parent Councils, and Schools, helping them build strong school communities whilst they raise over £130 million each year to enhance children’s education, our work stretches far beyond the school gates. Parentkind is building a powerful movement that recognises parental engagement not as a nicety, but a necessity.
In recent years, families have faced a series of compounding challenges: the cost-of-living crisis, rising child poverty, and deepening educational inequality. These pressures have left many parents struggling to meet basic needs—let alone feel confident engaging in their child’s learning journey. Parentkind has responded to this moment with compassion, agility and purpose, through a series of transformative campaigns, resources, and partnerships. Our recent transformational journey has seen Parentkind’s network grow by more than 70% of schools, and the income Parentkind has delivered both for itself and for its members by more than 550%.
Our No Cold Child initiative, launched with FatFace, stepped in to address a stark statistic: over 150,000 children in the UK do not own a winter coat due to poverty. Through our trusted relationships with schools, we distributed 10,000 warm, high-quality coats worth £600,000 to the children who needed them most. Shortlisted for two Business Charity Awards, the campaign has been praised not just for providing warmth, but for restoring dignity, inclusion, and school readiness to thousands of children.
Our collaboration with Asda on Cashpot for Schools is another example of unlocking support at scale. This innovative community-led funding model allows shoppers to nominate and fund their local schools simply through everyday spending. In just the last year, this campaign has generated £5.78 million for schools—supporting everything from basic classroom supplies to vital extracurricular programmes and pupil wellbeing initiatives. Also shortlisted for a Business Charity Award, it is already a model for community-driven philanthropy.
Meanwhile, our All Dressed Up campaign—developed with World Book Day and Rubies Masquerade—confronted the often-overlooked issue of financial exclusion on key celebration days. More than 100,000 free dressing up costumes worth £1.34 million were delivered to children from low-income families. By enabling participation in events like World Book Day, we helped spark imagination, joy, and belonging for children who might otherwise feel left out—boosting self-esteem and supporting a positive connection to learning.
Alongside these national campaigns, Parentkind supports families year-round through a growing suite of programmes designed to inform, prepare and empower parents. Our Be School Ready programme offers crucial guidance and confidence to parents preparing their children for the leap into primary education. With a mix of practical advice, developmental tips, and reassurance, through the distribution of 135,000 copies of Be School Ready and an online campaign, it supports families at one of the most formative moments in their child’s life.
We also deliver a wide-ranging series of live expert webinars and parent-friendly resources, covering topics such as managing anxiety, supporting special educational needs, navigating school transitions, and building home-school partnerships. These resources—developed in consultation with experts and rooted in lived parent experience—equip families to feel informed and empowered, no matter what challenges arise.
This month, we launched our Parent-Friendly Schools Accreditation Programme, designed to formally recognise schools that go above and beyond in fostering positive, inclusive relationships with parents. The accreditation celebrates schools that actively listen to parent voices, make engagement easy and accessible, and embed family partnership in their culture. It is a practical and inspiring tool to drive long-term change in the sector and offers a roadmap for schools wanting to strengthen their community.
Our work is grounded in evidence. Every year, we conduct the UK’s largest parental engagement study: the National Parent Survey. In 2024, over five thousand parents participated, providing invaluable insight into what families think about the education system. The findings are fed directly into government consultations and have already influenced national debates on school funding, attendance, mental health support, SEND provision, and curriculum reform. We believe passionately that parents must not be the missing voice in education policy—and we work tirelessly to ensure their views shape the decisions that affect their children’s lives.
Today, through Parentkind’s federated network of more than 130,000 parent and teacher volunteers, our work impacts the lives of millions of parents, carers, teachers and children throughout the UK through our membership, programmes, advocacy and campaigns. But we know we can—and must—do more.
We’re looking for someone with passion, purpose, and creativity—someone who understands that a warm coat, a World Book Day costume, or a parent’s voice at the table can all be catalysts for lifelong change.
This is an exciting opportunity to join our growing Fundraising Team and play a leading role in shaping a brand-new trust fundraising programme from the ground up. We’re looking for someone with experience in securing income from trusts and foundations—someone who’s a confident communicator, both in writing and in person, and who brings a curious and strategic mindset to prospect research.
You’ll help craft compelling cases for support and develop a portfolio of proposals and reports that showcase the impact of our work—amplifying the voices of parents and schools and demonstrating how Parentkind is driving positive change. Strong attention to detail is essential, along with the ability to manage multiple priorities and work independently.
If you believe, like we do, that when parents matter, children succeed, we’d love to hear from you.
You’ll have:
- Proven experience in trust and statutory fundraising, securing five- and six-figure grants.
- Demonstrable success in developing compelling proposals and reports for funders.
- Strong relationship management skills with a track record of stewarding long-term partnerships.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to convey impact effectively.
- Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines.
- Knowledge of the education, family support, or community development sectors.
You’ll get:
- To join a fast-moving charity with an exciting future
- To build your own team, playing a key role in driving forward the charity’s strategy and shaping our fundraising activity
- Remote working full-time with a great online team culture
- 25 days holiday in addition to UK public holidays.
How to apply
A full candidate pack is attached on this listing. To apply, please submit a CV and covering letter outlining your motivations for applying for the role and how you meet the Person Specification.
Interviews will be held on a rolling basis via video conference.
Parentkind is committed to a policy of equal opportunities and we ensure that all applicants are treated fairly and equally. We would be grateful if you would complete the equal opportunities monitoring questions when applying online to help us check that we are carrying out our policy of equal opportunities for all people. The information will be kept confidential and will be separate from your application. It will have no bearing on your application.
Parentkind is committed to meeting the needs of applicants with disabilities. Please let us know if you require any adjustments to your application or interview process.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Using Anonymous Recruitment
This organisation is using Anonymous Recruitment to reduce bias in the first stages of the hiring process. Submit your application as normal and our system will anonymise it for you. Your personal information will be hidden until the recruiter contacts you.
PINF is the first charity in the UK that exists to support high-quality journalism. We exist at the cutting edge of charity law and need an experienced charity professional to make sure we do things properly.
As Head of Operations & Governance, you will be responsible for overseeing the back-office operations of the charity. You will be a key point of contact for the team and support the Executive Director to ensure smooth, efficient and compliant operations.
You will be a senior member of the team, responsible for ensuring that PINF operates within its legal and regulatory framework, including in relation to charity, corporate, tax, employment and data protection regulations. The role involves liaising with the Chair, Board of Trustees, Executive Director, legal advisors and regulators to support best practice in financial management, governance, risk management and compliance.
Duties and responsibilities
-
Financial Management
-
Ensure consistent delivery and quality of finance operations, including transactions processing, which will involve managing a bookkeeping service.
-
Prepare and monitor annual budgets, management accounts and project budgets.
-
Lead on the financial aspects of fundraising, contract management, and funder reporting. Including managing restricted and unrestricted funding.
-
Oversee the process of preparing statutory accounts, including liaising with accountants and auditors.
-
Maintain internal controls and policies to protect assets, prevent fraud, and ensure business continuity.
-
Participate in the Finance & Fundraising Committee and support the Treasurer to plan and deliver meetings.
-
Prepare financial reports for board meetings and engage in board discussions.
-
Governance
-
Manage our annual governance cycle, working closely with the Chair, Treasurer and Executive Director to ensure legal compliance and to plan and prepare for Board meetings including taking appropriate minutes.
-
Manage the organisational risk framework including identifying emerging risks and working with the Executive Director to mitigate them.
-
Companies House and Charity Commission filings.
-
Develop and maintain a suite of policy to ensure PINF meets its obligations as a charity and an employer.
-
Play an active part in board discussion to support good decision making.
-
HR
-
Manage HR across the organisation; ensuring all HR processes and policies are fit for purpose, up to date and adhere to law, and are understood and implemented across the organisation.
-
Manage recruitment processes for all staff.
-
Manage the annual leave tracker.
-
Operations and administration
-
Ensure the smooth running of the organisation by leading operational planning and monitoring progress.
-
Lead on relationships and contracts with external suppliers and contractors.
-
Ensure PINF has appropriate insurance cover.
-
Occasional support with charitable activities (meetings, events, publications, etc.)
Requirements
-
A professional qualification in finance, management, law, or a related field and at least five years’ experience relevant to this role.
-
Deep understanding of good governance and best practice in the charity sector.
-
Understanding of relevant laws relating to employment, data protection and running a charity.
-
Sympathy to the aims and objectives of PINF.
-
Full professional proficiency in English.
-
Right to work in the UK.
Skills and attributes
-
Experience of managing charity finances and budgets (Essential). A related finance or accountancy qualification would be desirable.
-
Experience of managing operations in a comparable charity or business, with both strategic and day-to-day operational responsibilities.
-
Developing HR processes and policies and taking the lead in implementing these across an organisation.
-
Developing processes and procedures and making improvements for efficiency and impact.
-
Experience of working closely with trustees, non-executives or senior leadership teams.
-
Strong oral and written communications skills, including having the confidence to use your expertise to provide feedback and constructive challenge to senior leaders.
-
Excellent problem-solving and interpersonal skills.
-
Ability to work remotely and independently and to collaborate with others.
-
Enjoy being the key point of contact and support in a small, remote team.
-
Ability to stay on top of your workload by using relevant software (including Microsoft Office and finance software such as Xero), keeping accurate and up-to-date records, and prioritising between competing tasks.
Please apply using Charity Job. Once you click apply you will be prompted to upload your CV and answer an application question in up to 5000 characters: What do you see as the main challenges facing PINF as a small but ambitious charity, and how will you use your experience to address them as Head of Operations & Governance?
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
Civitas Recruitment are delighted to be working with a forthcoming non-profit organisation with a strategic focus on protecting and advancing the rights of Muslims across the UK. An exciting opportunity exists for a Director to join the team. As Director, you will lead the organisations’ vision and direction across all areas, overseeing strategic litigation that sets important legal precedents; driving research and policy initiatives that influence debate and decision-making ensuring the delivery of accessible advice and guidance to those navigating legal or civic challenges. This is a full-time, permanent role, home based within the UK with meetings and in person events in London.
Who are we looking for?
Ideal candidates will possess senior leadership experience in a legal, policy or advocacy organisation with a track record of strategic delivery and managing external partnerships. A strong understanding of UK legal and political issues affecting Muslim communities, including civil liberties, counter-terrorism and discrimination. You will be a confident communicator with experience representing organisations publicly and will have excellent written and verbal communication skills. Experience with fundraising, donor engagement and knowledge of non-profit operations or governance would be an advantage however it is not essential for the role.
If the above role description sounds of interest and you feel like you meet the criteria; please apply immediately or for further information, please contact Syed at Civitas Recruitment for a full JD and informal discussion. Early applications are encouraged as we will be reviewing on a rolling basis and roles may closer earlier than initially indicated.
SLOW is the only charity offering weekly in person and online support groups to bereaved parents and siblings in London and across the UK.
We have a fantastic opportunity for a Fundraiser to make a difference to the lives of bereaved families. As we look to diversify our income, you will work closely with the Charity Director to grow income from Corporate Partners, Community Events, Legacies and Trusts and Grants.
Reporting Line: Charity Director
Based at: Home and occasional travel to SLOW events
Hours: 21 per week (term time only)
Based in London, SLOW (Surviving the Loss of Your World) has offered emotional and practical support for over eighteen years to bereaved families in the UK that have lost a child in any circumstances. Our unique approach to working with parents and siblings is highly regarded by our members and professionals and we are proud to have won the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.
Our work is centred around regular support groups for bereaved parents, adult siblings and creative workshops for bereaved younger siblings. All our groups are facilitated by trained bereaved parents or siblings. Our members regularly refer to our groups as a ‘lifeline’. Our model of bereavement support is unique and is a direct response to what bereaved parents have told us they need.
SLOW is a registered charity with an income of currently circa £185k. The charity has a stable resource base with a range of income sources – some annual, some on multi-year commitments and other funding resulting from planned and targeted approaches.
Key Responsibilities
- Under the leadership of the Charity Director, the Fundraiser will manage the day-to-day fundraising and support the Charity Director in raising funds and developing SLOW’s income to ensure financial stability. You will assist the Charity Director in achieving the annual income and suggest new revenue streams.
- Working closely with the Charity Director, you will manage, monitor and execute SLOW’s annual financial target through a variety of different revenue streams. You will be supported by SLOW’s Business Management Assistant.
- The Fundraiser is part of a small team of paid and voluntary personnel working to maintain and develop SLOW in accordance with its founding principles and ethos. From time to time the post-holder will be required to take on tasks that are the primary responsibility of another if necessary.
Execute grant applications including: ·
- Researching appropriate grants for applications
- Writing and checking of all grant applications including proposing figures and the provision of all supporting documents
- Responding to queries from funders, including meeting/networking with them where necessary
Detailed Description Grants and Fundraising
- Collating and submitting feedback forms including analysis of expenditure versus grant allocations and membership
- Maintain good relationships with officers of grant making trusts and bodies in order to ensure regular and timely compliance with requirements
Assist with all SLOW fundraising including specifically:
- Managing corporate and private donations, charitable retail schemes and digital fundraising channels
- Work closely with the BMA to set up and administrate sponsored events and other ad hoc fundraising activities
- Researching and proposing additional channels for fundraising
- Work & liaise closely with volunteers at SLOW events
Person Spec:
Essential:
Previous experiences of successful grant applications and fundraising
Experience of organising fundraising events
Strong communication and interpersonal skills
Solutions Focused
Flexible and adaptable attitude
Computer literacy
Desirable:
Experience of corporate partnerships
Experience of Legacies
Experience of working remotely within a highly successful small team
Knowledge of CRM systems, preferably Beacon
A bereaved parent or sibling
Experience of working within a similar organisation
HOW TO APPLY
Please apply for this post by midnight on Monday 5 May by sending a CV and covering letter of no more than two A4 pages describing how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the essential and desirable criteria in the person specification.
Only applicants selected for interview will be contacted, and an invitation to interview will be sent by email.
Shortlisted candidates will be interviewed by the Chairty Director and other members of the SLOW Team, either in person or via video conferencing, as the situation allows.
SLOW is committed to enriching the diversity of our team to better reflect the needs of the communities we serve and to enhance the skills of our workforce. We actively encourage applicants from underrepresented backgrounds to apply for this role if your skills match the job description.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Macular disease is the biggest cause of sight loss in the UK, with around 300 people diagnosed every day. The Macular Society is the only charity determined to beat the fear and isolation of macular disease with world class research, and the best advice and support.
To support people affected by macular disease now, the Macular Society provides a range of support, information and services. Our research programme is focused on finding new treatments and a cure to Beat Macular Disease forever.
This exciting role is responsible for delivering income from a range of donors and prospects, with a focus on trusts and foundations, lottery and statutory sources, as well as HNWI. We are looking for an ambitious and strategic fundraiser with a proven track record of raising significant funds from charitable trusts and foundations, lottery and statutory sources as well as HNWI, who, alongside our existing team, will help to grow and develop this area of fundraising for the Macular Society. The post holder will have a proven eye for detail, an analytical nature, first class relationship management skills and a flair for writing successful applications.
In return, we provide a great working culture – we do something worthwhile and are proud to work together to Beat Macular Disease – as recognised by our inclusion in The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2023 list.
We offer flexible working options, 26 days annual leave, rising to 27 after one years’ service, the ability to buy or sell annual leave, supportive family policies, and 6% pension contribution.
We are passionate about treating people fairly and as equals, doing so is instinctive to us. To Beat Macular Disease for all we know we have work to do. That’s why we are keen to hear from people of all backgrounds who have the skills and experience we are looking for. We particularly encourage applications from people from under-represented groups, to help ensure what we do and how we do it is inclusive – for everyone.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
About the role
We are seeking a highly motivated and organised Fundraising Officer to join our team. You will support the wider team by identifying funding prospects, supporting bid-writing, and processing bid applications. You will ensure funder and donor relationships are built and maintained as well as actively researching and building new fundraising prospects. This is an excellent opportunity for someone passionate about making a difference and gaining valuable experience at a cutting-edge and busy charity. The role is ideal for a self-starter with innovative ideas as there is potential for role development once in post. CSH values the well-being of its employees, offering a supportive environment, flexible working patterns, and a range of staff benefits like online yoga classes, a book group, and more. If you are passionate about sustainable healthcare and looking for a rewarding, impactful role, this is your chance to make a difference!
-
Home-based with monthly travel to Oxford (flexible and expensed).
-
Full time post (0.8 FTE considered for the right candidate)
-
Salary: £25,500 with career progression options
-
Fixed term for 12 months (with a view to extend into a permanent position)
-
Apply by: 09:00am Thursday 1st May
-
Expected interview date: Monday 19th May 2025
About The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare
The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare (CSH) has been leading efforts to incorporate the values of environmental sustainability into the health sector since its establishment in 2008. Our work is underpinned by CSH’s Principles of Sustainable Clinical Practice: prevention; patient empowerment; lean care systems; low carbon alternatives.
Our vision is for all people in the health system to be able to shape and deliver sustainable healthcare which supports our communities and our natural world; our mission is to inspire and empower people with the knowledge, skills and tools to play their part in the transformation to sustainable healthcare.
Our Clinical Transformation Programme mainstreams environmental sustainability within clinical areas so that it is integral to the planning of health systems and the practice of healthcare professionals and provides training in sustainable healthcare and planetary health for staff in educational institutions, professional bodies and healthcare organisations. The Green Space for Health Programme works to realise the value of the NHS green estate for physical and mental health, supporting NHS sites to develop their green space for the benefit of patients, staff and communities, while improving biodiversity and combatting climate change. These programmes are supported through the work of our Core team.
Key Responsibilities:
Fundraising:
-
Conduct research on potential funding opportunities and grant applications
-
Assist with the development and implementation of fundraising campaigns
-
Monitor and evaluate fundraising activities, providing reports and recommendations
-
Assist with online fundraising campaigns, including online donation platforms
-
Research and implement new ways of building individual giving
-
Maintain accurate records of fundraising activities and donor information.
-
Assist with the preparation of fundraising materials.
-
Stay up to date with fundraising best practices and trends
-
Any other duties as assigned by the Development Director
-
Support the wider team to build fund-raising skills
Bid-writing:
-
Keep the team up to date on upcoming funding opportunities
-
Support teams to write bids. Provide management and frameworks to ensure deadlines are met and a high standard of writing is achieved
-
Work with the Chief Operating Officer to ensure bids are budgeted correctly
-
Complete application processes for bids
-
Ensure compliance paperwork is completed and recorded.
Donor Management:
-
Assist with donor communication and stewardship, ensuring timely and personalised acknowledgments and processing
-
Maintain and update donor databases, ensuring accuracy and confidentiality.
-
Assist with research and prospect identification.
-
Respond to donor enquiries in a professional and timely manner.
About you
Essential Qualifications and Skills:
Essential:
-
A track-record of successful grant applications.
-
Experience in a fundraising or administrative role within the charity sector.
-
Knowledge of fundraising principles and practices.
-
Ability to quickly assimilate technical information and translate it into plain English
-
Excellent organisational and administrative skills.
-
Strong attention to detail and accuracy.
-
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
-
Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook).
-
Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
-
Confidence managing donation platforms such as JustGiving, Easyfundraising etc.
-
A genuine passion for environmental sustainability
Desirable:
-
Experience with CRM databases.
-
Experience of working remotely
-
Confidence in proposing and implementing new fundraising systems
-
Experience of working in the health and/or environmental sectors or charities supporting them
-
Confidence using prospect research tools
-
Experience supporting teams to write and submit funding applications
-
Experience budgeting and costing projects/applications
Closing date: 09:00am Thursday 1 May 2025
To inspire and empower people with the knowledge, skills and tools to play their part in the transformation to sustainable healthcare.




The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
The Sociological Review Foundation is seeking its first Development Manager to join its team. This role, reporting directly to the Operations Director, presents a unique opportunity to drive the organisation’s strategic growth initiatives and fundraising calls, expand partnerships, and generate revenue through the sale of services.
Note: We can only accept applications from applicants who are based in, and eligible to work in, the UK.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
We are looking for an experienced Trust Fundraiser with a background in securing income from charitable trusts and foundations to join our team to help Groundswell continue to create positive change in the lives of people, services and systems on their mission to tackle homeless health inequalities. Recently kicking off our new ‘Creating Positive Change’ strategy, coproduced by over 130 staff, volunteers, clients and partners, we have ambitious plans and a compelling model which in its simplest form promotes healthier lives and a better future for anyone who has experienced homelessness.
The successful post holder will have experience in leading the development of well-written, compelling proposals and reports to charitable trusts and corporate foundations; demonstrating key relationship management skills to ensure all our funders feel part of Groundswell’s mission. You will be a flexible worker with strong organisational, research and written communication skills. You will pride yourself in collaborative working to ensure the most successful chance of securing income, whilst being a self-starter who can manage their own workload effectively.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Having begun as a two-person part time project with the modest goal to development of some resources to support listening practices, the School for Synodality has grown to become a hub of encouragement and support around synodal practices within the Church in England and Wales and an important voice in the international conversation about the implementation of synodality. This growth has necessitated stronger working partnerships, growing our capacity and systems. To ensure the limited capacity of our directors is best utilised we’re looking for an operations manager to join are team to support smooth running of the project and development of its vision.
The School for Synodality Operations Manager will be central to the operational and administrative functions of the School for Synodality, including overseeing the work of the Administrator and Communications Specialist and supporting projects and partnerships with diocese, local church communities and other stakeholders across the Church. The role requires someone who understands the Catholic Church and is committed to fostering collaboration for the vision of the School for Synodality.
The successful candidate will need to be comfortable working in a remote, flexible context and working alongside part time staff and volunteers with limited capacity.
The employer of this role will be Northampton Diocese.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Reporting to: Director of Policy and Engagement
Direct reports: 1 x Scotland Policy and Public Affairs Manager and Legislative Lead, 2 x Policy and Public Affairs Officers, 1 x England Policy and Public Affairs Manager
Location of work: Home-based. The post holder must be easily and quickly commutable to London and will require frequent meetings in London. The role may involve some irregular travel throughout England and Scotland to attend events and meetings.
Contract type: Full-time, 35 hours per week, flexible hours may be considered. The role may require occasional evening and weekend work
Contract Length: Permanent
Salary: £54,500 - £56,500
BACKGROUND
Our work has never been more needed. The latest research suggesting that the number of children and young people at risk of hunger has rocketed to 2.6 million* means that one in five children don't have enough to eat.When a child is too hungry to learn, when they’re aching for something to eat, they can’t concentrate. They can’t absorb information. Big feelings and worries can be impossible to control. They fall behind in their studies.
Magic Breakfast provide a nutritious and filling breakfast to over 300,000 children and young people every school day. We work with schools in areas of high disadvantage, helping staff target the children most in need without barrier or stigma. Magic Breakfast are ambitious to grow our impact to remove hunger as a barrier to learning for all children and young people in the UK.
This is an exciting time to join Magic Breakfast if you wish to make a difference to the lives of children as we work to influence both policy implementation, with the national rollout of primary-aged universal school breakfast, and legislative change, through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. There has also been commitment from the Scottish Government for a national breakfast scheme and we are seeking to expand our advocacy work into Wales. Magic Breakfast’s influence will be instrumental to ensuring school breakfasts are implemented in a way that is hunger-focused and barrier free.
In addition, thousands of secondary school children are at risk of losing their free school breakfasts from September next year. For many of these students, this is their only opportunity to have a nutritious meal before facing a demanding school day, including taking exams. And for the very youngest, we know that the disadvantage gap begins before they even reach reception. With the Government commitment to another 100,000 places in school-based nurseries, early years is also a critical part of our advocacy work.
Being part of the work of Magic Breakfast is your chance, together with parents, teachers and people across the UK, to demonstrate the power of school breakfasts and to shape the way forward to end morning hunger for good.
*Food Foundation Insecurity Tracker Jan 2025
JOB PURPOSE
The Head of Policy & Public Affairs will review, develop and implement our advocacy strategy and lead a team to influence the devolved legislatures across the UK to address child morning hunger, with a view to the underlying systemic causes of child poverty and hunger, by driving change through policy and legislation. The role operates at our ‘Head of level’ which is the most senior operational specialist level and provides both operational and strategic leadership.
This role will also provide wider leadership across the charity and input into organisational strategy development and planning as part of the Core Management Group. This role will ensure that the Policy and Public Affairs function is aligned to the wider strategic aims and outcomes of Magic Breakfast as well as the internal operational systems and delivery.
The strategic leadership will ensure an external and long term view, with an outward looking and forward thinking approach that builds thought leadership, relationships and partnerships, with positioning to anticipate and build on new opportunities to end child morning hunger for good.
It will require an experienced Policy and Public Affairs professional, with significant experience of high impact and demonstrable outcomes at a senior level in the field. The postholder will lead the policy and public affairs team to influence the Early Adopters Scheme, the national rollout of primary school breakfast provision in England and breakfast legislation in the Children’s Wellbeing Bill (CWB).
They will also develop, guide and lead plans to influence the Scottish government, particularly in the run up to the election in May 2026 and the influencing of manifestos; and will lead Magic Breakfast’s upcoming influencing work in Wales.
In the external leadership that the role provides they will build relationships with politicians, political influencers, special advisors and civil servants to establish long-term, sustainable solutions to child morning hunger in the UK.
As a compassionate, people centric and inspiring leader they will work to enable their team to grow and develop in their skills ensuring they can step away from the detail whilst retaining accountability, build effective resource management and progression pathways. This role may manage external consultants where necessary, and work collaboratively with external organisations to amplify our voice and asks and strengthen our position as a thought leader.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
· Review and define the advocacy strategy for 25/26 in line both with moving political environment and Magic Breakfast’s influencing agenda, considering the systemic barriers to ending child morning hunger for good.
· Develop and maintain close relationships with the Department for Education and other key departments including Department for Health and Social Care and Treasury, to secure hunger and child focus as key priorities for breakfast provision.
· Develop, monitor and evaluate influencing plans for each devolved nation
· Support the development of influencing plans with coalition groups and organisations to influence school breakfast policy, commitments and implementation
· Review policy positions in Wales and Northern Ireland and define our advocacy approach, gaining external insights and analysing available research and data to shape the plan
· Develop a vision for advocacy beyond current demands, considering political appetite and gaining insight from lived experience communities and relevant sectors, to ensure that we are clear on future asks, and can build the foundation towards them.
· Work with Impact and Insights team to define future research needs to meet our longer-term advocacy plans
· Enhance and establish internal processes and ensure good internal information dissemination
· Work closely with key internal stakeholders to shape advocacy work and support broader organisational objectives
· Embed learnings and develop a fail fast, learn fast culture in the team
· Coach, support and lead direct reports enabling increased professional development, strategic decision making, proactive project management and robust political influencing
· Contribute to and help shape the work of the Core Management Group to ensure ongoing alignment for in year implementation of the strategic plan and create integrated future year plans which meet organisational goals
· Monitor and review KPIs to monitor and measure both team and cross organisational performance, using the results to guide teams and surface learnings
· Assess areas of risk and escalate where necessary and according to policy
· Develop and monitor annual team budgets
General
• Work collaboratively across the organisation, building good working relations and providing ad-hoc support to other teams and members of staff
• Passion and commitment to Magic Breakfast’s aim of alleviating morning hunger as a barrier to learning for children in the UK.
• Help to maintain a positive working environment; keeping the vision of Magic Breakfast at the heart of everything we do.
• Share Magic Breakfast’s commitment to Diversity, Equality and Inclusion
• Establish and ensure existing Ways of Working are adhered to across team
• Adhere to all Magic Breakfast policies and procedures and ensure that all activity is compliant with current legislation, GDPR, data protection and child safeguarding requirements
• Undertake any other duties commensurate with the role
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
· Strategy development, demonstrating a deep understanding of how to craft, implement, and evolve strategies that align to operational outcomes for the Policy and Advocacy function as well as enabling our organisation strategy in our aim to end child morning for good.
· Stakeholder management and partnership building with extensive experience of engaging, influencing, and collaborating with diverse stakeholders, including senior political figures, policymakers, funders and sector leaders.
· Ability to confidently and flexibly deal with volatile political environment, anticipating potential developments and adapting to emerging situations to meet aims
· Highly experienced in developing and shaping policy positions, using insights, research and data sets to inform and guide decision-making
· Understanding and experience of the role of the broader external environment to shape policy asks and political influencing, including the implications of a policy ask in one sector on another.
· Experience of influencing key political events such as budgets, national elections and the legislative process.
· Significant experience of coaching, supporting and managing the development of a team, with the ability to make difficult decisions and challenge where needed to deliver the organisational strategy.
Desirable
· Experience of education, food insecurity, child poverty or childcare sectors
Skills and Abilities
• Effective leadership mentality with confidence to step away from the detail and delegate responsibility, enabling others to use judgements, make decisions, learn from failures and continuously improve.
• Analytical and evidence based decision making, with the ability to turn data and analysis into policy and advocacy related recommendations or outcomes for action.
• Effective planning, prioritisation and project management skills. Able to organise self and team to meet planned objectives and strategic direction with the ability to pivot and manage the unexpected.
• Strong, influential and impactful interpersonal and communication skills and to advocate for own specialism, department and Magic Breakfast's mission, effectively conveying the organisation's impact and needs to a wide range of audiences.
• Operational and financial acumen and analysis: understanding and practical application of knowledge as required around funding considerations, budget development and management, risk management, and ensuring systems in place for efficiency by setting and maintaining policy and procedural frameworks.
• An outward looking and forward thinking approach that drives a sense of curiosity, innovation and continuous improvement. Always thinking what can we learn from others, what new developments can be explored and what are the opportunities for the function to improve and grow with others too.
WHAT WE OFFER
At Magic Breakfast we value our employees and work hard to develop offer a supportive, respectful culture which enables everyone to bring their whole self to work.
Please find attached our job pack
APPLICATION PROCCESS
Should you wish to discuss the role before applying please email our People and Culture Team, recruitment @ magicbreakfast. com
Shortlisting - w/c 5th May
Interview 1 - 15th and 16th May
Interview 2 - w/c 21st May
We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if a high volume of applications are received. This is to ensure that we can manage application levels whilst maintaining a positive candidate experience. Unfortunately, once a vacancy has closed, we are unable to consider further applications.
About Respect
Respect is a pioneering UK membership organisation in the domestic abuse sector. Founded in 2000, we have built our expertise over the last 23 years in what was then a fledgling sector and recently have seen significant and rapid growth.
Respect supports frontline organisations across the UK, so that together we can end domestic abuse. Our work is wide ranging: we offer accreditation of specialist services; we provide training for individuals and organisations working in the sector; we work in partnership with others to innovate and develop practice; we provide two helplines to enable service users to get the help and advice they need; we lobby influencers to improve policy and practice; we support up-to-date research undertaken by specialists in the field; and we fundraise to ensure important work continues to happen.
Respect has seen rapid growth over the last few years, and we now have 60+ staff running a range of projects and core activities and have ambitious plans for further growth and influence.
Our vision
We want a world where everyone is free from domestic abuse. Where it is never ok to control, harm or cause fear. Where those who perpetrate domestic abuse are stopped, held to account and given the chance to change.
Our mission
We work with our members, partners and allies to stop the harms done by those who perpetrate domestic abuse. With innovative practice, robust research and quality data, we build evidence of what works, promote safe, effective practice and drive high standards. We use our voice, in collaboration with others, to call for a response to domestic abuse that matches the scale of the problem. We will not stop, until domestic abuse stops.
Our Focus
Respect was founded to focus on perpetrators of domestic abuse and this, including our vital work with young people who cause harm, will remain our key priority. Our work with male victims will continue as an important, distinct, project.
Our Values
-
Pioneering - We explore innovative ideas and develop new approaches with curiosity and rigour.
-
Collaborative - We work in partnership with our members, partners and allies to bring about individual, societal and systems change.
-
Accountable- We listen to survivors and centre their needs in our work. We hold perpetrators to account for their behaviour and hold ourselves and our members accountable for ours.
-
Respectful - We live up to our name. We are committed to equity, diversity and inclusion in all that we do. We are honest, compassionate and boldly challenge injustice.
Make a Change
Make a Change is a community-wide, early response approach to people using abusive behaviours (or who are concerned that they might be) towards a current or ex-partner. The model has been developed by Respect in partnership with Women’s Aid Federation England, drawing inspiration from their Change that Lasts approach. It includes three strands: expert support programme for perpetrators with parallel support for survivors, workforce development and community outreach.
Improving the safety, freedom and wellbeing of adult and child survivors of domestic abuse is a key outcome for our work with perpetrators. The Make a Change model is a multi-partner project offering local areas a framework for delivering perpetrator work. Where feasible, we aim to establish partnerships with local survivor domestic abuse service to deliver parallel support for survivors (referred to as Integrated Support Service) as part the expert support strand.
Purpose of the role:
The Senior Communications and Policy Officer will work with the Make a Change team at Respect to advance the development of communication and policy activities for the Make a Change model in project sites and nationally to encourage uptake in new areas. They will also work with Respect’s Communications and Influence leads to ensure alignment with the organisation's broader messaging and advocacy efforts, maximising the impact of Make a Change initiatives. The postholder will lead on developing and implementing communication strategies and plans in partnership with our delivery partners across the sites.
We would particularly welcome applications from individuals from a wide range of backgrounds and across all protected characteristics1, particularly from people from the following under-represented groups:
-
Black and minoritised people
-
Disabled people
We always welcome and support applications from those who have personal experience of domestic abuse.
Please follow the link to find out more.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
We're recruiting for a new role for someone to lead on People and Culture at Involve.
Involve has grown in terms of both its turnover and staffing headcount in recent years. In 2024, we marked our 20th anniversary and the need for this new role reflects the growth and maturity of the organisation as we build the infrastructure to support the larger, more established organisation of around 30 people.
The People and Culture lead will report to the Director of Finance and Support Services and be responsible for developing our HR policy and practice taking a holistic approach and embedding our values into HR policy, leading consultation with our union on policy development. They will work closely with the management team to support the development and implementation of strategies to foster a positive organisational culture and provide HR generalist support to our team.
The People and Culture lead will be a CIPD qualified HR professional with strong HR generalist experience allied with a participatory approach that supports us in developing an inclusive environment in which everyone is supported to grow, develop and contribute to achieving our mission.
We work across the UK, with offices in Belfast and London. Many of our staff work from home across the UK or in a hybrid pattern, rather than being based at one of our offices, though we meet up regularly as a team.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Using Anonymous Recruitment
This organisation is using Anonymous Recruitment to reduce bias in the first stages of the hiring process. Submit your application as normal and our system will anonymise it for you. Your personal information will be hidden until the recruiter contacts you.
About Free to Run
Free to Run’s mission is to advance gender equity globally through running. We are a registered nonprofit/nongovernmental organization that has been operating community-led programs for adolescent girls and young women since 2014. We are known for delivering long-term, youth-led, progressive running, leadership, rights, and health programs directly to girls and young women living in protracted conflict zones. However, the longer-term impact of our work is building enduring social change - decreasing barriers to public participation, increasing women in leadership, and making power structures more equitable and inclusive. Free to Run identifies as an organization working at the intersections of feminism, human rights, development, and humanitarian interventions.
The organization is in a position of significant growth, in terms of our strategy, reach, impact, and operating budget. In 2024, we embarked on a new three-year strategic plan that positions us to reach 50,000 people by 2026. We will meet this goal through our work across three strategic pillars: direct service (EMPOWER), capacity building for local, women-led NGOs (EQUIP), and building a global movement of activists who are passionate about gender equity and running (MOVE).
Position Overview
A new role within the organization, the Philanthropy Officer, Trusts and Foundations is responsible for identifying, building, and managing a (new) portfolio of trust, foundation, and grant funders from identification to stewardship, developing high-quality proposals, budgets, and reports. Alongside ownership of this portfolio, the Philanthropy Officer, Trusts and Foundations will support the broader Free to Run team with prospect research and assist with applications and reports for institutional/transformational funders.
This position offers a high degree of flexibility and would suit a proactive self-starter with a strong ability to self-manage to achieve goals and a demonstrated passion for the work of Free to Run. This is a unique opportunity for an experienced trusts and foundations fundraiser to build and grow a new, high-potential portfolio from the ground up, with strong support from program and leadership teams.
While some support for larger institutional grants is part of the role, we are particularly seeking applicants with experience managing and growing portfolios of charitable trusts, private foundations, or family foundations, rather than institutional grant management alone.
This role reports to the Director of Development and Communications and is a part-time (20 hours per week), fully remote position. While Free to Run is registered in the U.S., our team is based around the world.
Core Accountabilities
1. Create and manage a portfolio of trust and foundation donors at the four- to five-figure level (60%)
-
Take primary responsibility for developing, growing, and building strong relationships with a portfolio of trust/foundation/grant funders through the full donor cycle.
-
Take an active role in meeting and exceeding annual income targets by developing strategies to maximize foundation and grant funding, regularly assessing progress, and reporting to senior management.
-
Develop a formal pipeline of foundation funding opportunities for Free to Run
-
Develop compelling, high-quality funding applications tailored to donor requirements, leveraging program data and impact narratives.
-
Work with the Programs team to oversee budget tracking and reporting requirements for grants, ensuring accurate fund allocation, compliance with donor requirements, and timely submission of financial and impact reports.
-
Collaborate with the global Free to Run team to identify and develop new funding opportunities and projects
2. Support the process of donor qualification and prospect research (15%)
-
Use research tools to support the ED and Development Team with in-depth prospect research profiles for individual major donor prospects, family foundations, and other prospective funders
3. Provide support to the Free to Run team with institutional grant applications (20%)
-
Monitor grant tracking tools to identify and qualify new opportunities for institutional or transformational grants
-
Keep up to date with the funder landscape and giving trends across multiple geographies
-
Support the ED and Programs with the development of grant applications, project budgets, or other related materials where needed
-
Work with internal stakeholders to lead organizational grant tracking within the donor database (EveryAction), ensuring accurate documentation of all interactions, proposals, and gifts.
4. Engage with the Free to Run Team (5%)
-
Participate in weekly 1 on 1 meetings with manager
-
Participate in performance planning, goal setting, and evaluation activities
-
Liaise with key staff across functions of this position
-
Attend team meetings and participate in strategic planning and evaluation meetings
Location
- This is a fully remote position that can be carried out from anywhere in the world. Travel may be required occasionally to attend fundraising events or organizational/donor meetings.
- For candidates outside the U.S., this role will be offered as an independent contractor position, allowing for flexible working hours and location.
Working Hours
- This position is a part-time role at 20 hours/week. The role offers a high degree of flexibility, although working hours may occasionally fluctuate outside regular core hours to attend meetings across time zones.
Compensation
- The full-time equivalent (FTE) salary for this role is $45,000–$50,000 USD per year (approximately £35,500–£39,500 GBP based on current exchange rates). The actual salary will be pro rata based on 50% FTE, i.e., $22,500–$25,000 per year, and will be paid in USD.
Experience and Competencies
Below is what we are looking for as we evaluate applications. Candidates don’t need to have all these experiences and competencies but should be able to display strengths across multiple areas.
Language:
- English (full fluency required, written and spoken)
Experience
-
3+ years of experience successfully managing a portfolio of charitable trusts, private or family foundations, or similar funders, with a proven track record of securing and stewarding gifts in the $5,000–$100,000 range
-
Direct experience crafting tailored funding applications, budgets, and impact reports for US, UK, or international philanthropic funders, in collaboration with Programs teams
-
Confidence in independently managing the full donor lifecycle — from prospecting and cultivation to application, reporting, and stewardship
-
A demonstrable track record of developing long-term relationships with grantmakers or major donors
-
Experience in prospect identification and research using relevant tools and databases
-
Familiarity with the funding and donor landscape in the UK, EU, North America, and/or MENA region
-
Experience using a CRM system for fundraising (EveryAction or similar) to manage donor records, track proposals, and support donor stewardship
Skills and Competencies
-
Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to write compelling and persuasive cases for support
-
Ability to effectively convey the impact of social justice, gender equity, and the power of running, hiking, and outdoor sport in driving positive change
-
Ability to think creatively and spot opportunities for new or increased funding
-
A results-oriented mindset with the ability to self-organize, meet deadlines, and deliver on goals
-
Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with people from diverse racial, ethnic, geographic, religious, sexual orientation, gender, and generational backgrounds
-
Interest in international girls’, women’s, and human rights or running/outdoor sports
Free to Run is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We don’t just accept differences — we celebrate, support and thrive on them for the benefit of our team, our programs, and our organizational strength. We are proud to be an affirmative action employer, committed to diversity, equity and inclusion of ALL people in our hiring and employment practices. We encourage applications from people who have non-dominant identities based on race, ethnicity, migration status, ability, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic class, etc.
Free to Run's mission is to advance gender equity globally through running.

The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Using Anonymous Recruitment
This organisation is using Anonymous Recruitment to reduce bias in the first stages of the hiring process. Submit your application as normal and our system will anonymise it for you. Your personal information will be hidden until the recruiter contacts you.
About the role
As one of two Regional Programmes Manager, you’ll inspire and lead a team of Senior Programmes Officers and Kinship Family Workers to effectively deliver high quality support services for kinship families across Greater London, the South of England and the Midlands.
You’ll do this by working in close collaboration with local authority teams who have commissioned our services and other funders where appropriate.
You’ll have accountability and ownership for ensuring we deliver impactful services for kinship carers and that we meet targets for our commissioned services. Working collaboratively with our other managers in other services, you’ll ensure we’re delivering high impact programmes.
You’ll ensure your team have real clarity and direction on their role and responsibilities - encouraging curiosity, learning and solutions-focused thinking. As a leader in the organisation, you are a key model for the team.
Your team will deliver the following programmes:
- Kinship Connected – in-person one-to-one support and support groups in the community
- Kinship Reach – remote one-to-one support and virtual support groups
- Kinship Ready – online workshops to prepare new and prospective special guardians for their role, as well as wraparound one-to-one support (in one local authority)
You will also manage a new role of Grants Officer - London, funded by the Aviva Foundation.
As one of our deputy safeguarding leads, you’ll be part of our key safeguarding structure. This means you’ll take ownership to make sure our people feel confident and well supported to demonstrate best practice and making sure safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.
Key responsibilities include:
-
Oversee the day-to-day running of programmes, supporting mostly home-based Senior Programmes Workers and Kinship Family Workers to ensure high quality, consistent and impactful programme delivery.
-
Meet performance targets as directed.
-
Create and keep developing processes and systems which support consistency across all programmes, ensuring good quality documentation and manualisation on Notion.so
-
Develop quality assurance frameworks with other service managers and directors.
-
Support your team to establish and deliver in-person and virtual peer support groups regionally and generate engagement with kinship carers.
-
Line management and supervision of Senior Programmes Workers and Kinship Family Workers as required.
-
Actively encourage personal development and support staff to deliver key targets and outcomes and ensure high levels of wellbeing.
-
Work with the Director of Services and Digital, Head of Programmes and the Business Development team to develop proposals and present to local authorities to secure commissions.
-
Manage the delivery of commissioned contracts through collaborative relationships with local authorities, ensuring targets are met.
-
Manage the programmes and services within budget, in accordance with Kinship’s financial procedures and ensure the reporting of progress in line with funder requirements.
-
Work actively and positively with other managers within Kinship to ensure sharing of best practice, problem solving, relevant connections and consistency of delivery across England and Wales.
-
Act as a deputy safeguarding lead at Kinship
Essential requirements include:
- Substantial experience in managing a regional service or programme with high quality outputs (national experience desirable but not essential).
- Substantial experience of managing, developing and evaluating effective and innovative services for families experiencing crisis and experience in reaching ‘hidden communities’ and a commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.
- Experience of leading and managing continuous improvement in changing contexts.
- Experience of governance and managing risk on high profile service delivery.
- Experience of ensuring that services are designed and led with user needs at the heart, ensuring that the voices of our kinship carers inform ongoing design and development of our programmes.
- High quality digital and data literacy and using technology to help us to be better in our processes. You’ll have to own Salesforce and be a massive champion for the team. You will be accountable for ensuring they use it well.
- Substantial experience of leading high-performing service teams including managing wellbeing, development and performance.
How to apply
In place of a cover letter, you will be asked to answer the following five questions, alongside providing your CV. Please keep your answers to a maximum of 250 words.
- Tell us why you’re interested in working for Kinship in this role and what experience you bring that would make you successful? This is an opportunity to tell us about you, your experience and your values.
- Please give an example where you have managed a successful regional programme or service (this could also be national). Please include scale, key performance indicators and outcome. What made it a success?
- What makes you a great team manager? Give one example of how you have supported teams and individuals to flourish and one example when you have had to step in to address behaviour or performance issues. (This is an opportunity to share your enthusiasm for supporting others to develop and deliver to a high standard. You can share evidence of how your approach has worked and how you’ve tackled challenges and difficult conversations along the way).
- Quality assurance and consistency is key to making sure our programmes deliver impact for our kinship carers. This includes ensuring your team are following processes, using our case management system effectively and have the tolls to do their role. Please describe how you would approach this at Kinship using a previous example.
- In this role you will be a deputy safeguarding lead at Kinship. This is a key role, the lives of kinship carers are incredibly complex. Give one example of a safeguarding situation that required your response in a previous role. Explain what your rationale and thought process was. How did you hold appropriate boundaries and progress actions to effectively safeguard vulnerable children and adults?
Key Dates
- Application deadline: Wednesday 30 April, 9am
- First interview: Online – Tuesday 6 May
- Second interview: In person (Vauxhall, London) – Tuesday 13 May (travel expenses covered if required)
About Kinship
We are Kinship. The leading kinship care charity in England and Wales. We’re here for kinship carers – friends or family who step up to raise a child when their parents aren’t able to.
We are made by and for our community of kinship carers. Like family, relationships run deep. And we hear their experiences; for too long they have been isolated without the help they need.
We support, advise and inform kinship carers. Connecting them so they feel empowered. Because a child needs the love and warmth of a thriving family.
We develop research, campaigns and policy solutions. Creating positive change across society. Because for kinship families, love alone is not enough.
Through our work we harness frustrations to fuel passion for change. And tough experiences to inspire ideas that transform lives.
And as we see momentum building, we keep using evidence to demonstrate the value of kinship care. Helping kinship carers navigate challenging circumstances. Believing in a child’s potential.
Join us. Together, let’s commit to change for kinship families.
• Make sure you’ve read the job description and the essential requirements – make sure your answer reflects those points in the requirements very clearly.
• Really tell us why you want to work for Kinship. We’re interested in working with people who share our values.
• Keep your response clear – use bullets points and short paragraphs if that helps. It will help the recruitment team to really focus on your answer.
• Please do not use AI tools like ChatGPT to produce your answers. We use software to check and your application will be rejected if you do.
We support kinship carers in their homes and communities, giving advice and helping them work through problems to find the best way forward.





The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Location: Home-based in the UK, with regular national and international travel
Contract: 2 years with the possibility of extension dependent on continuation of funding.
Reporting to: Chief Operating Officer
Salary: £65,000 to £70,000.
Additional benefits: 25 days annual leave plus public holidays (annual leave increasing by 1 extra day for every year’s service up to 30 days total), life assurance and access to an employee assistance programme.
WeProtect Global Alliance will not be responding to expressions of interest or applications sent by third parties (agencies, brokers or recruitment specialists).
We require a highly skilled and motivated individual who has strong ethical standards and demonstrable commitment to the values of WeProtect Global Alliance to help plan, coordinate, implement and track our existing and new global strategy to ensure that our members collectively work together to create a world where children and young people can access and participate in the digital world free from harm, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation.
The successful candidate will demonstrate considerable professional experience in a comparable role and a genuine passion for child protection. They will have a strong track record in developing, harnessing and deploying policy and research outputs to support and collaborate with the WeProtect Global Alliance community to develop real world solutions to make the digital world safer for children and young people across the globe.
Politically, commercially and financially astute, you will have a broad range of skills. You will be able to build relationships and work effectively with a broad range of global partners (who often hold competing views and opinions). You will confidently and comfortably support often ambiguous and sensitive negotiations with diverse stakeholders as we develop and implement the organisation’s new global strategy.
You will be able to focus on both the detail and the bigger picture in a complex policy and legislative landscape and be an inspirational and supportive team player who will live our values, shine confidently as a key member of the senior management team, be a role model to our brilliant research manager and policy manager and ambassador when engaging with members and external partners.
If working on strategy, research and policy, combined with our mission of making the digital world free of harm for children and young people, motivate you to come to work and give your best every day, then this is the place for you and we cannot wait to welcome you!
About WeProtect Global Alliance
The online world was not created with children in mind and can be unsafe for children and young people to explore. Every phone and computer is a potential gateway for offenders seeking to sexually exploit children. Our Alliance generates political commitment and practical approaches to make the digital world safe and positive for children, preventing sexual abuse and long-term harm.
Our Alliance’s geographical reach is unprecedented: 103 governments are members along with 82 private sector companies, 126 civil society organisations and 10 intergovernmental organisations. This diverse membership is key to our ability to deliver real change. Together, we break down complex problems and develop policies and solutions to protect children from sexual abuse online. More information on who we are and what we do can be found on the WeProtect Global Alliance website.
WeProtect Global Alliance is supported by a high-performing secretariat of eleven staff based in the UK and Belgium and is overseen by an influential Global Policy Board that the Head of Strategy will work collaboratively with to ensure the Alliance members remain impact and child centred.
Job description
Overall purpose of role
As the WeProtect Global Alliance Head of Strategy, you will lead a small team to build a global network, evidence base and policy portfolio to guide and drive the implementation of our Strategy and mission targets. Your team will provide high level analysis and ask critical questions, supporting the Alliance to identify immediate and emerging issues which may require investigation or exploration, support the Policy Board, Executive Team, Head of Members and Head of Development to navigate key strategic decisions.
You will also work closely with the Head of Members and Head of Development to support the development of new ways of working to harness Alliance members and broader community of practice to understand our collective impact and ensure our secretariat, members and broader organization actively remain relevant and focused on delivering our mission and strategic objectives.
You will lead the WeProtect Global Alliance Research and Policy work, with key accountability for the following outcomes:
· Work with the Executive Team and Policy Board to implement the existing WeProtect Global Alliance strategy and ensure the forthcoming strategy remains targeted and focused on achieving the Alliance’s global ambition.
· Work with the Executive Team and Policy Board to develop and implement the WeProtect Global Alliance approach, strategy and operational targets on participation and engagement.
· Collaborate with the Head of Members, the Head of Development and MEL lead to collectively build, maintain and oversee our theory of change and operational model to ensure our Strategy remains impactful and has real world impact on the lives of children and young people.
· Provide inspirational leadership and empower our Policy Manager and Research Manager to pro-actively deliver a portfolio of work that will raise the profile of our mission and shift the needle on governmental, public and private sector agencies approaches to child protection and safety in the digital world. This includes overseeing the production of the WeProtect Global Alliance biennial Global Threat Assessment, Model National Response and Global Strategic Response.
· Build and maintain meaningful engagement with a broad range of external stakeholders across the public, private and third sector (including government agencies, advocacy communities, specialist tech and civil society organisations) across the globe to deliver the WeProtect Global Alliance strategic mission.
· Play an active role in building the operational resilience, financial sustainability and compliance capability and capacity of the Secretariat to provide a world class service to our members and Board to ensure WeProtect Global Alliance remains focused on creating a world where children and young people can access and participate in the digital world free from harm, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation.
Key Responsibilities
1. To lead the Strategy team, ensuring the research and policy portfolios are informed by best practice to achieve our mission, vision and embody our values. This includes working across the Secretariat to deliver the existing strategy and collaborate with Executive Team to develop and implement our new strategy.
2. To be a thought leader, keep abreast of external trends and developments and changing circumstances to ensure the WeProtect Global Alliance Strategy remains relevant, targeted and focused on improving outcomes for children and young people in a rapidly changing legislative, operational and technology landscape.
3. To be accountable for strategy, research, policy and cross organisational projects and work streams. This includes planning and organising relevant performance and delivery areas, being mindful of cross-cutting impacts and priorities.
4. To be accountable for the commissioning, delivery and impact of strategic projects, ensuring they are led and informed by participatory and advocacy principles to reflect the diversity of our membership, embed lived experience, and deliver the WeProtect Global Alliance mission.
5. To ensure the continuous development and effective delivery of the WeProtect Global Alliance Strategy in a fast paced, politically sensitive and rapidly changing external environment, including participating in and leading (where relevant) annual business planning, forecasting, setting, monitoring, reviewing and reporting on budgets and relevant donor requirements to support effective decision making throughout the year.
6. To provide exemplary leadership and line management to staff, including appraisals, supervision, team meetings, delegating, managing, engaging, developing and supporting staff to be the best they can be and achieve our strategic objectives in accordance with our vision and values.
7. Lead and develop effective working relationships with external partners, stakeholders, members and staff to maximise the collective impact of WeProtect Global Alliance (governmental, public, private, civil society and advocacy communities).
8. To take accountability for preparing papers, reports and presentations for internal and external meetings including senior management meetings, executive team, trustee, board and reference groups meetings. To attend, chair, and contribute to meetings, briefings, reviews, due diligence and auditing and compliance activities.
9. Represent the Executive Director and the Chief Operating Officer at internal and external events, share peer responsibility for problem solving challenges, creating a ‘one team’ approach to delivery and deputising were appropriate.
10. To be an ambassador, spokesperson and representative of WeProtect Global Alliance Secretariat at external events.
Expectations
As a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) you will also have a pivotal role to play in supporting and improving the organisations effectiveness as we develop the WeProtect Global Alliance new strategy, operating model and ways of working to ensure we remain effective, responsive and relevant in an increasingly polarized political landscape as we enter the fourth industrial revolution.
As a global, multi-sector alliance, ensuring equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is embedded in everything we do is a critical priority. We embrace diversity and understand that being an inclusive organisation, recognising different perspectives, will enable us to be impactful and effective. We are committed to ensuring all our employees are treated fairly and equitably at work and promoting equality in physical and mental health for all.
1. To attend and contribute to meetings, training and other events as required.
2. To actively participate in our supervision and appraisal process.
3. To ensure that all responsibilities and activities within this post are delivered in accordance with WeProtect Global Alliance core values and relevant corporate, organisational, financial and compliance policies.
4. To travel to meetings and fora which may require the need to work unsociable hours e.g. attending evening or weekend meetings.
5. To adhere to relevant legal and statutory requirements including Data Protection Act and the Health and Safety at Work Act.
6. To use WeProtect Global Alliance resources responsibly.
Person Specification
Essential criteria
Experience
1. Significant senior experience and demonstrable record leading a Strategy Team to deliver an ambitious child centred mission on the global stage.
2. Outstanding leadership and team management experience, including experience coaching and line managing direct reports.
3. Demonstrable effective influencing and negotiation skills and political judgment with a proven track record building productive and impactful professional relationship and partnerships with a wide range of individuals and organisations.
4. Demonstrable experience leading change and transformation with demonstrable qualities as a change agent.
5. Demonstrable senior management level experience in project management, financial, donor and budget management, monitoring, evaluation and lesson learning across the fields of strategy, research and policy.
6. Significant experience commissioning high quality, high value research and policy projects and able to demonstrate the use of insights in long term planning and impact frameworks.
Skills
1. Outstanding communication skills and ability to effectively engage and build meaningful relationships with internal and external staff and stakeholders at all levels.
2. Outstanding self-management skills to work independently, autonomously and as part of a team, using own initiative and being flexible and adaptable to deliver as ‘one team’.
3. Excellent IT, project management, financial management and donor engagement skills.
4. Demonstrable excellent planning and organisation skills to deliver work to agreed timescales and standards.
Knowledge
1. Knowledge and understanding of WeProtect Global Alliance mission, vision, values and ambition and how it applies to this post.
2. Knowledge and understanding of a child centred approach to participation, advocacy and EDI and how it applies to this post, with a focus on embedding effective policies and processes.
3. Awareness of global child protection policies and procedures within the digital arena and a genuine passion for child protection.
Other
1. A willingness to travel and work unsocial hours (time in lieu can be claimed)
2. Commitment to your own continuing professional and personal development
3. To uphold high standards of work, standards and conduct in line with WeProtect Global Alliance values.
Diversity, inclusion and equity
We welcome applicants from all sections of the community, regardless of age, sex, gender (or gender identity), ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation. We particularly welcome applicants from ethnic minorities and other under-represented groups.
Safeguarding and values
As a child-focused organisation, we have a strong commitment to child safeguarding and rigorous procedures. The successful candidate will be required to provide two referees and to undergo a criminal record check.
All staff are expected to act at all times in a manner consistent with our values and in compliance with our policies and procedures, including our Safeguarding Policy and Code of Conduct.
Our values are:
· Empowerment – collaboration, innovation, challenge
· Accountability – responsibility, delivery, safeguarding
· Respect – honesty, feedback, inclusion
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.